They arrived at Ahch-To shortly after Ben's mother left them.

"Ben!" Rey opened the door to their impromptu prison. "We're there!"

"Wonderful."

You don't seem particularly thrilled, Dex observed.

We're going to see Luke- my uncle- the one that tried to kill me. Ben sighed. The one that I failed.

You came back. That's what counts. Dex could feel the guilt weighing heavily on Ben's mind. Memories of bloodshed. I know it's hard- I can feel it, and I'm only getting it secondhand.

I'm sorry. You shouldn't have to pay for my sins.

"Ben ..." Rey stared at him. "We're not alone, are we? You're talking to someone? Is it your mother or uncle?"

Ben frowned, weighing his options. He knew that he would have to tell Rey about Dex at some point, but he wasn't sure if the time was right. "I'm talking to a friend of mine."

"And he's like us?"

"He's like you."

Dex laughed. Ben, I'm nothing like Rey. She's a hero. I'm just-

A man who gave his life to save a child.

I didn't exactly plan on dying.

You could have abandoned the child. You didn't. You fought for that boy right until the end. You didn't even think about abandoning him.

Anyone would have done the same.

You really believe that, don't you? Ben smiled. "He's … it's hard to explain, Rey. That's one of the reasons Mother brought us here. She thinks that Luke might be able to help Dex."

"Oh. Is he with us? Is he a Force Ghost?"

"Not exactly." Ben tapped his head. "He's up here."

"I don't understand."

"It is kind of complicated. We don't fully understand it either." Ben thought for a moment. "Dex, go ahead and speak to Rey. Openly I mean."

"Openly?" Rey asked.

"You've talked to him a couple of times in the past." Ben whispered. He was on dangerous ground. What if Rey figured out that Dex was the reason he had done what she asked …?

That's not true and you know it, Dex told him firmly. You had the desire. You just needed a little push, that's all. I'm sure you would have gone to her side eventually.

What makes you say that?

If nothing else, the hundreds of fanfictions that were written after your … after your story was told in my world. People write stories about Rey and you falling in love, getting married, having kids …People write lots of stories about such things. There's art too. Dex coughed nervously.

What kind of art? Ben asked suspiciously. Wait. Never mind. I don't think I want to know right now. Just say hello to Rey.

"Hello, Rey. My name is Dexter Ferris. You can call me Dex. I'm Ben's friend. He's very kindly letting me talk to you right now." He held out his hand for Rey to shake.

Rey took it and gave it a very firm handshake. He wouldn't have expected anything else. "Dex … I'm pleased to meet you." She's obviously having a hard time believing that he's someone other than Ben playing an elaborate joke on her.

"Come on, Rey," Dex told her with a smirk. "Do you really think Ben has a sense of humor?"

"I do so have a sense of humor!" Ben declared firmly. "Watching Hux get humiliated by Supreme Leader Snoke was hilarious."

"Not the right kind of humor to convince her you're reformed, Ben." Dex rolled his eyes- technically Ben's eyes- and smirked again.

Rey's eyes narrowed. "Watching you argue with yourself is very disconcerting, Ben."

"Tell me about it," Dex admitted. "I don't even sound like me. When I think about it, I'm surprised you can even understand me. It would be some kind of cosmic fluke if my native language sounded exactly like yours."

"You are speaking Basic because you're using my body," Ben told him. "It's probably best we don't think about these things too closely or our heads could explode."

"Okay. Maybe you do have a sense of humor."

"I'm not joking."

"... Oh."

"This is so strange ..." Rey murmured. Her lips were twitching though. Ben could feel her amusement through the bond between them.

"Ben talking to himself?" Dex asked her.

"Ben being nice to someone who isn't me."

"He wore me down," Ben said in a deadpan tone of voice. He was rewarded with a full-on smile from the young Jedi.

They looked deeply into each other's eyes.

Amy, Dex breathed to himself. He remembered the night when she had looked at him like that … the only night she had looked at him like that. "Ben, I'm going to go back into my apartment."

"Dex?"

"You two need this time. This moment. I … I need to be somewhere else." Tell her how you feel. This is the perfect time. When she knows who she's talking to.

I need your help, Dex, Ben thought desperately. I'll kriff it up …

You have what you need. Just be braver than I was. That's all you need to be. I'll talk to you later.

"I'm not sure what that means," Rey said, obviously puzzled, "but I hope to talk to you again soon, Dex. It was nice meeting you."

"You too, Rey." And Dex slipped into Ben's mind once more.

"He's shut himself away," Ben said with a sigh.

"You're worried about him." Rey gave him a lopsided smile. "Should I be jealous?"

Ben smiled. "Not a chance, sweetheart. You have nothing to worry about."

Rey blushed. "That sounds nice."

"What?"

"Sweetheart." She blushed again and then looked way. "Kriff. Do you realize how fast everything has happened to us? A week ago you were trying to kill me, now we're looking at each other like … like …."

"Say it," Ben whispered.

"We're looking at each other like we're in love." Rey blushed. "But that's impossible, isn't it?"

"Why is it impossible?" Ben asked her.

"You're … you're Luke Skywalker's nephew, Han Solo's son—" she saw Ben wince as she said that, but hurried on. "You're Leia's son, for Force's sake. You're royalty. I'm just ..."

"The most amazing woman I've ever met."

"Next to your mother?"

"You stand all on your own, Rey." Ben gave her a lopsided smile of his own. "You've done more good for the Galaxy in one week than I've done in my entire life … than I could do with the rest of my life. You are brave, strong, and kind. You're everything Mother and Father wanted in a child... and nothing that I've ever been. I'm the one who's not worthy of you."

"Ben-"

"Hear me out, Rey." Ben looked at her. "I love you. I don't deserve you. I don't know that I'll ever deserve you. I've done terrible, unforgivable things. I've killed innocents- more than I can even recall. I chose to be a monster. I don't know that I can ever become the kind of man you deserve... the kind of man that you could love … but I want to be. I want to be able to look in the mirror and not be ashamed of what I see. I want to be a man again. I want to be a good man.

"I want you to think you made the right decision to come to help me.

"It's okay if you don't love me, Rey. There are a million reasons why you shouldn't. I won't blame you if you turn and walk away. I just … I just wanted to tell you- I just wanted you to know."

He looked down at the ground so that he wouldn't have to see the rejection he feared was coming. Don't let me lose my temper. Let me be worthy. Force, let me be worthy.

"Oh, Ben," Rey breathed. She took his hands in hers. "Look at me."

"I can't. I'm afraid."

"I was afraid too when I went to you. When I thought you betrayed me to Snoke."

"You were magnificent. You never gave up. You kept on fighting."

"I tried. But I would have died. If not for you, I would died."

"You're grateful. I understand." He forced himself to look into her eyes.

"You're trembling."

"Baring your soul when you don't know what's going to happen next kind of does that. My heart feels like it's gong to explode."

Rey laid her hand on his heart. "Don't let that happen."

Ben smiled shyly at her.

Rey took his head between her hands. "I'm not as perfect as you think I am, Ben. I'm not a flawless human being. I've made mistakes. I pushed you. I was arrogant. I thought I could do what Luke and Han couldn't: I thought I could save you."

"You did."

"No you saved yourself. You saved yourself when you chose to work with me. You saved yourself when you came with me."

"About that..." Ben said softly.

"Yes?"

"Dex might have helped me a little ..."

Author's Note: Next up, Rey and Dex have a chat. And we meet Luke Skywalker again!